<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>A Blessing From the Gods by lallyloo</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27578108">A Blessing From the Gods</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/lallyloo/pseuds/lallyloo'>lallyloo</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Eagle of the Ninth - Rosemary Sutcliff, The Eagle | The Eagle of the Ninth (2011)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Beltane, Bodyswap, Drunkenness, Humor, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 21:40:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,407</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27578108</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/lallyloo/pseuds/lallyloo</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Esca watched himself step past the curtain and approach with caution. They stared at each other, neither one quite sure what to say, and Marcus's fingers itched at his side, fingering the leg of his braccae as he eyed the sheet covering Esca's legs.</p>
<p>“May I look?” Marcus finally asked.</p>
<p>Esca nodded, pulling back the bed linen. Marcus's expression changed when his eyes fell upon the scar, as if he couldn't fully understand the situation until he saw his leg, his scar, separate from his current body.</p>
<p>“You're in my body,” Marcus said gravely.</p>
<p>“And you're in mine.”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Marcus Flavius Aquila &amp; Esca Mac Cunoval, Marcus Flavius Aquila/Esca Mac Cunoval</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Blessing From the Gods</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Originally posted to livejournal in 2011.</p>
<p>Another fic I forgot about. Written for the old Eagle Sunday Service, filling a request for Marcus/Esca bodyswap.</p>
<p>Technically unfinished, but I'm hoping posting it here might encourage me to finish it eventually!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Beltane fires burned brightly, heralding in the season, and after filling their bellies with food and wine, Esca convinced Marcus to dance with him on the hill. Marcus moved slowly, mindful of his leg, and Esca held Marcus's arm to steady him as they danced to the rhythm of the drums.</p>
<p>Moving on the hillside, his mind swimming from drink, Esca silently asked his gods for a safe summer and a good harvest, praying for them to watch over Marcus and himself and bring good fortune upon the farm they had built together. If Marcus prayed to his own gods, he didn't speak of them, he only watched Esca as they moved, the glow of the firelight dancing in his eyes.</p>
<p>The spring had been good to them so far. They'd tilled the land, and sowed the seeds, and rain had been plentiful. When one of their mares brought them a new colt, Esca and Marcus had exchanged smiles, feeling that perhaps success would finally find them on their new farm.</p>
<p>Esca's feet pounded against the earth, optimism welling within him and extending out to his fingertips, and he willed it to flow out of himself and into Marcus. The previous year had been trying. Despite their triumph, their harrowing trip across the wall had left them ragged and beaten, and it was time they were both permitted some happiness.</p>
<p>When the old druid appeared from over the hill, performing ritual and offering drink, Esca had bowed his head, asking for a blessing. The druid gestured for Esca's hand, encouraging him to let go of Marcus, and dipped his fingers in a cup. The liquid inside was hot, steeped over one of the smaller fires, and Esca resisted the urge to withdraw his hand. Marcus stood beside him, watching the ritual, until the druid gestured for him as well. Marcus was more hesitant than Esca had been, giving the old druid a questioning gaze as he allowed his hand to be taken and his fingers dipped in the cup alongside Esca's.</p>
<p>The druid gave a blessing, the words spoken too low for Esca to hear. He withdrew their fingers and raised the cup in the air, calling to the gods, and then pushed it towards Esca, encouraging him to partake. Esca sipped the liquid, its sweet nectar warming him as it travelled down his throat and filled his belly, and blissfulness seemed to flow through him. The druid passed the cup to Marcus, gesturing to his mouth, encouraging Marcus to drink. Marcus hesitated again, glancing at Esca, and Esca smiled and nodded, his eyes feeling heavy and his feet feeling light as the urge to dance came over him again.</p>
<p>“Drink, Marcus,” he said, beginning to move, and Marcus raised the cup to his mouth and drank.</p>
<p>Then they danced again, their feet feeling light beneath them. Marcus's leg seemed to pain him less as the night wore on, and they travelled home together, laughing as they walked across their fields.</p>
<p>They separated after entering their farmhouse, each heading for his own room, and Esca tossed himself on his bed and slept so soundly that when he woke he couldn't be sure if he'd been asleep for seven hours or seven days.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>***</p>
</div>Esca's body felt heavy beneath him, his fingers feeling odd as he stretched his arms above his head, and Esca groaned, sure that all the celebration and drink had left him ill. Esca reached for the pitcher of water he kept by his bedside and was surprised to find that not only was it not there, but his bedside table had been moved to the opposite side of his bed. He had no recollection of doing so while drunk, but stranger things had happened after he'd had too much mead. Esca glanced around the room, glancing first at the window and then at the curtain which separated him from the rest of the house. It was Marcus's curtain, easily recognizable because of its red colour, the fabric an old piece which was brought from his uncle's villa.<p>So he was in Marcus's room. It wasn't unheard of either – the two of them getting roaring drunk and ending up in the wrong room. Occasionally they'd woken in the same room, and once in the same bed, both of them too sick from drink to laugh or be embarrassed as Esca detached himself from Marcus's side.</p>
<p>If he was in Marcus's room, he could only assume Marcus was in his. Esca laughed to himself, turning over in the bed, but his laughter stopped when he brought his hand up to scratch at his jaw. His fingers felt thicker than normal, and Esca fought away a sense of worry as he looked at his hand and tried to determine why his fingers might be swelling. Surely he couldn't be sick. He must simply be in need of water, food, anything that might make his body feel right again.</p>
<p>Esca stared at his hand, holding it away from his face as he eyed his skin, and he couldn't ignore the nagging notion that the fingers looked familiar. Not like his own, but much like Marcus's. His gaze moved to his wrist, and down his arm, and his stomach lurched.</p>
<p>Esca sat up in bed, hands trailing frantically up and down his arms, then over his torso. He felt different – larger, thicker, stronger. Esca's hands moved over his face and the contours felt unfamiliar. The shape was different, his jaw felt wider, and his neck felt incredibly thick as he trailed his fingers over it. A sense of dread began to creep over him, and Esca fisted his hand in the bedsheets, feeling ridiculous but needing to know. He carefully eased back the sheet, and his eyes fell to his left leg.</p>
<p>Marcus's leg.</p>
<p>Esca had nursed that leg a hundred times, massaged it, kneading the muscle until the pain abated. He knew each bump and groove, each thick knot of scar tissue.</p>
<p>Esca was apprehensive as he moved his fingers to touch his thigh, trailing down and over his knee. He pressed lightly, testing, then harder. He wanted to feel. He was well aware of Marcus's pain, but he had never fully understood it until that moment when a piercing ache shot through him. It radiated down to his toes and up the full length of his thigh, as if someone had taken his muscles and twisted them in their hand, and Esca couldn't help the pained yelp that escaped his throat.</p>
<p>Esca pulled the sheet back over his legs –Marcus's legs– and then pinched himself, hard. If it was a dream he needed to wake, but the pinch did nothing, and Esca found himself still in Marcus's bed, apparently in Marcus's body. The sun filtering through the window felt warm, and Esca's throat suddenly felt parched. Each sensation seemed too real to be a dream, and Esca resisted the urge to be sick as he searched his mind for a solution or, at the very least, an explanation.</p>
<p>He suspected the Beltane fire, but the night has been reduced to nothing more than a blur in his mind, and Esca was struggling to recall any details when the red curtain moved as if someone was tapping against it. Esca stared at the doorway, suddenly fearful that Marcus might be on the other side. He wasn't sure how he would explain his situation, so he spoke, loudly, his voice deeper than he was accustomed, but his accent was still there, “Marcus stay where you are, don't enter.”</p>
<p>“Esca?” The reply wasn't as deep as Marcus's voice, but something in the tone told Esca that it was Marcus speaking to him.</p>
<p>“Stay where you are,” Esca repeated. “Something has happened.”</p>
<p>Marcus refused to listen, pushing the curtain aside, and Esca found himself staring at his own visage. Marcus, apparently in Esca's body, looked absolutely gutted as he caught sight of himself sitting in his own bed.</p>
<p>“Esca,” Marcus remained in the doorway, apparently too fearful to step into the room, “what is this?”</p>
<p>“I don't know.” Esca motioned for Marcus to approach the bed. “But you might as well come closer.”</p>
<p>Esca watched himself step past the curtain and approach with caution. They stared at each other, neither one quite sure what to say, and Marcus's fingers itched at his side, fingering the leg of his braccae as he eyed the sheet covering Esca's legs.</p>
<p>“May I look?” Marcus finally asked.</p>
<p>Esca nodded, pulling back the bed linen. Marcus's expression changed when his eyes fell upon the scar, as if he couldn't fully understand the situation until he saw his leg, his scar, separate from his current body.</p>
<p>“You're in my body,” Marcus said gravely.</p>
<p>“And you're in mine.”</p>
<p>“Esca how--”</p>
<p>“The bonfire,” Esca interrupted.</p>
<p>Marcus's eyes grew wide as if he recalled something Esca did not. “The druid. He did this.”</p>
<p>“What druid?”</p>
<p>“With the drink, don't you remember?”</p>
<p>Esca shook his head, “I recall almost nothing from last night.”</p>
<p>“Esca,” Marcus sat upon the bed, exasperation in his voice. “You asked for a blessing and he put our hands in a cup and made us drink. You have no recollection?”</p>
<p>Silence fell between them as Esca shook his head again. He had no memory of a druid or a blessing, no memory of his hand in a cup, and yet, there they were, Esca in Marcus's body, and Marcus in Esca's.</p>
<p>“I need to relieve myself,” Esca said, standing.</p>
<p>Marcus looked horrified. “You can't.”</p>
<p>“I can, and I will.” Seeing Marcus's discomfort, Esca was glad for the loincloth Marcus had worn to bed, and he rifled around the floor to find the braccae Marcus had discarded the night before. “You think I'm not going to piss while I'm in your body?”</p>
<p>“I'd rather you waited until we found a solution.”</p>
<p>“And what if there's no solution?” Esca pulled the ties around his waist, surprised at how differently clothes fit Marcus's body than his own. “Besides, I've seen your cock before.”</p>
<p>He had, countless times. Flaccid, of course, and once long ago, when Marcus was suffering through the fever of his injury, erect and wanting.</p>
<p>“They're all the same,” Esca continued when the pained expression remained on Marcus's face. Esca pushed through the red curtain, leaving Marcus alone on his bed, and then thought better of it and stuck his head back through. “And you might be wearing braccae now, but you and I both know I sleep naked. Now stop acting so bothered by something as common as a cock.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Esca left the farmhouse, stomping out onto the grass, and he realized he'd have to rethink his style of walking if he were to remain in Marcus's body. Every other stomp sent a faint ache through him, and he'd managed to ease up a bit by the time he reached the large oak tree at the back of the farmhouse.</p>
<p>Esca yanked the ties at his waist, tugging the fabric low enough to release his cock, and he paused. He hadn't considered the fact that he'd have to hold Marcus's cock in order to relieve himself. While he'd seen it countless times, he'd never had his hand on it, and Esca's fingers hovered over the flaccid length.</p>
<p>“They're all the same,” he hissed to himself, taking Marcus's cock gently in hand and holding it out a bit to keep from dripping on his braccae. He glanced down briefly, and then flicked his gaze back to the bark of the tree, thinking it better if he didn't look. His mind began to race with the realization that his hand was currently on Marcus's cock, and Esca glanced back down, suddenly thinking it less distracting and more clinical to actually watch.</p>
<p>He waited, using his free hand to lean against the tree, and he held Marcus's cock, willing it to relieve itself. He'd been on the verge before, but the sudden distraction of actually touching Marcus that way was enough to bring his body to a standstill.</p>
<p>“Having difficulty?” The voice wasn't his, but Esca knew it was Marcus, and he turned to see himself round the corner of the farmhouse.</p>
<p>“Your cock is shy,” Esca said, keeping his gaze on Marcus, and he registered a strange sensation as his cheeks began to blaze with embarrassment. In his own body the heat of shame travelled up his neck and spread to his ears, but apparently Marcus's shame held fast in his cheeks, and Esca could feel them burning as he watched Marcus walk by him.</p>
<p>“It's not,” Marcus laughed, averting his gaze as he walked, “you'll figure it out.”</p>
<p>Esca turned his attention back to the tree, staring intently at the bark until he finally made himself glance down again, not caring if Marcus saw him looking. He held Marcus's cock, and focused on Marcus's balls until he managed to relaxed, and relief washed over him as a stream of liquid hit the oak tree.</p>
<p>“Thought they were all the same,” Marcus called, still laughing as he headed to the chicken coop.</p>
<p>Esca smiled to himself, cursing silently as he waited for Marcus's cock to finish relieving itself. They <i>were</i> all the same – balls, shaft, head. They all piss and they all come, and it shouldn't have mattered that he held Marcus's length in his hand.</p>
<p>Yet, it did matter, because it was Marcus.</p>
<p>When he was finished, Esca remained where he was, still leaning against the tree, and he let himself look – just for a moment. Marcus was slightly shorter than him, but wider, with a darker head and a seemingly thicker sheath of foreskin. Esca touched the underside, just for a second, testing whether the vein there was as sensitive as his own, and he was surprised to find it wasn't.</p>
<p>“Fine,” Esca called, tucking Marcus's cock away and tightening the ties around his waist as he headed for the chicken coop. “They're not <i>all</i> the same.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The first day was rather uneventful. They busied themselves with work, both men avoiding each other as much as possible, perhaps thinking if they didn't see each other the strange situation they'd awoke to would disappear as quickly as it had come.</p>
<p>At dinner, however, Esca found himself still in Marcus's body, with Marcus sitting on the opposite side of their small table –in Esca's body– staring at Esca over his plate. Marcus had eaten a few bites of bread and the rest of his food went untouched.</p>
<p>“We need to find a solution to this,” he said. “We can't just pretend it hasn't happened.”</p>
<p>Esca took a bite of bread, considering himself across the table. “Well, it happened while we slept. I say we sleep tonight and hope it's fixed itself by morning.”</p>
<p>“And if it hasn't?”</p>
<p>“Then we'll worry over it in the morning.”</p>
<p>The look of concern remained on Marcus's face, so Esca reached across the table, settling his thick fingers over Marcus's.</p>
<p>“We'll be fine.” It was strange, touching his own hand, and he withdrew. “Right now my only concern is where we should sleep tonight. I went to sleep in my bed, but woke in yours. Do you think sleeping in our own beds would reverse the spell?”</p>
<p>Marcus shrugged his shoulders. “Since I am in your body, I think it best I sleep in your bed. I imagine if your mind travelled tonight, it would search for its body in its proper bed. Mine as well.”</p>
<p>It was a valid theory, and better than any that came to Esca's mind.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>That night they settled in each other's beds, leaving the curtains open between each room, hoping their souls might find quick and easy passage through their small farmhouse.</p>
<p>“Sleep well,” Esca called from Marcus's bed, his voice echoing in the small space.</p>
<p>“You as well,” Marcus called back. His voice seemed to waver, and Esca couldn't be sure if it was fear, or nerves, or simply because Marcus's voice sounded different coming from Esca's body.</p>
<p>“I hope to see you in the morning, my friend,” Esca called again, wanting to set Marcus's mind at ease. “I've already grown tired of seeing my own face.”</p>
<p>Soft laughter trickled from the opposite room, and Esca said nothing more as they both drifted to sleep.</p>
<p>The gods would reverse the spell by morning, Esca was sure of it.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>***</p>
</div>Pain gripped Esca, tearing his from his sleep and jolting him into to an upright position. He stared into the darkness of the room, his mind reeling as he tried to determine what was happening. Pain shot through him again, sending an unbearable ache from his thigh down to his toes. Esca gripped his left leg, grunting as he tried not to call out, but when the muscles in his thigh suddenly felt as if they were twisting around themselves, he found himself shouting for Marcus.<p>Footsteps sounded from the other room, moving quickly over the floor, and then Marcus was there. Marcus reached for him in the darkness, his fingers fumbling, finding Esca sitting upright and gripping his shoulders.</p>
<p>“Are you alright?”</p>
<p>“Marcus,” Esca hissed, finding it nearly impossible to speak over the pain, “my leg.”</p>
<p>“Lie back.” Marcus pushed at Esca's shoulder, easing him back down to the bed, and reached for Esca's leg in the darkness. He gripped the skin directly above Esca's kneecap, and massaged up. Esca let out a shout as his muscles seized and twisted, and Marcus pushed again, his fingertips digging into the muscle fibers, sending searing pain through Esca's body. Esca grabbed hold of Marcus's hand, trying to stop him.</p>
<p>“Marcus, please,” he groaned, but Marcus's fought back, keeping his grip on Esca's leg.</p>
<p>“Esca, you must bear it,” he said, “We need to massage the muscle. You know this.”</p>
<p>“I don't know anything! Get off!” Esca yelled, flailing weakly, trying to force Marcus's hands off him. His body was reeling from the pain, and Esca couldn't make sense of what Marcus was saying, or why he was trying to hurt him.</p>
<p>Marcus eased his hands off for a moment, climbing onto the bed and making a soothing sound low in his throat as he settled in at Esca's side.</p>
<p>“You're in my body,” Marcus said slowly, his breath warm against Esca's ear. “Do you remember?”</p>
<p>He'd forgotten. Whether through sleep or pain, or simply waking in the darkness, Esca had forgotten that he wasn't himself. He gritted his teeth as pain shot through him again, and then he grasped for Marcus's hand. “I remember now,” he said through clenched teeth. “Marcus, make it stop.”</p>
<p>Esca usually prided himself on having a high tolerance for pain, but the ache in his leg was unexpected, and the pain so unbearable, that he found himself biting down on his knuckles as Marcus reached for him again. Marcus pressed in, working the muscle, the pain so severe that tears began to well in Esca's eyes as he grunted against his fist.</p>
<p>“I'm sorry,” Marcus whispered, his face still close to Esca's, his words trying to soothe as he massaged Esca's leg, “my hands are not as skilled as yours.”</p>
<p>Esca nodded, his face brushing against Marcus's.</p>
<p>On the nights Marcus woke in pain, Esca was quick to rush to his side, his hands knowing where to touch and knead. After so long, he'd been able to do it without question, simply sensing where Marcus ached. But it was different with Esca in pain, his body unwilling to do anything but suffer though it. He didn't have the strength to try to massage the muscle on his own, and Marcus was trying his best to do it for him.</p>
<p>“You know where it aches,” Esca hissed, his free hand gripping Marcus's shoulder, needing something to hold, his fingers surely leaving marks on his own skin. “You're doing fine. Keep going, I'll bear it.”</p>
<p>Marcus kept on, his fingers forcing out the knots in Esca's muscles, remembering where the pain hit him hardest and working his fingers there, trying his best to emulate Esca's motions. It took several minutes for the muscles to stop seizing, and many more for the pain to die down. By the time it had abated enough for Esca to breathe again, he was exhausted.</p>
<p>He was left with a dull ache, his skin feeling raw from the pressure of Marcus's fingers, and Marcus's hand remained on him, slowly stroking his thigh.</p>
<p>“Better?” Marcus asked, his voice soft as he spoke the words into Esca's hair.</p>
<p>“Yes,” Esca sighed, unable to believe that Marcus suffered through such pain so frequently. “I don't know how you stand it.”</p>
<p>“I've grown used to it, I suppose,” Marcus said simply. “I imagine it is worse tonight because we danced at the fire.”</p>
<p>Esca nodded, exhausted, and didn't reply.</p>
<p>When he was finally able to think clearly again, Esca considered their position on the bed. Marcus was curled up beside him, and it was an odd feeling, to be lying with himself. Most nights he stayed with Marcus until the pain receded, and then returned to his bed, but that night, after suffering through Marcus's pain and finally having some idea of what he went through, Esca found he didn't want to be alone.</p>
<p>“You'll stay?” he asked quietly, nervous to hear the answer, and Marcus just nodded against him, his hand stroking gently over Esca's thigh.</p>
<p>“Of course.”</p>
<p>“Our souls won't have far to go then, if the Gods reverse the spell tonight.” Esca didn't care a whit if the Gods switched them back that night, he simply wanted Marcus to stay and keep a soothing hand on him. It had been years since someone had taken care of him, and Esca welcomed the comfort.</p>
<p>As he drifted to sleep, Esca wondered if Marcus felt that way as well after his suffering – needing the comfort, but too ashamed to ask for it, letting Esca return to his room when he'd rather have him at this side to sooth him back to sleep. Esca swore to himself that he'd try to return the favour. Next time he would stay, whether Marcus asked for it or not.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Esca drifted in and out of sleep, his night of pain forgotten, having left him with nothing more than a mild ache above his knee. His bed felt good –warm and comforting– and the early morning light was barely beginning to break through the window. He shifted under the bedsheets, turning onto his back, and felt his cock pressing heavy against his leg. He often woke that way, stiff and wanting, and he'd fist himself, grunting into his pillow as he spilled his seed. He'd then clean himself quickly before greeting Marcus in the small living area of their farmhouse.</p>
<p>Esca fumbled with the ties of his braccae, reaching beneath the fabric and taking himself in hand, and his mind vaguely registered that something seemed off. He turned onto his side, and stroked himself languidly, enjoying the easy quiet of the early morning. After a few slow tugs, Esca trailed his fingers along the underside of his cock, teasing the place he was most sensitive, and he felt mild frustration when his cock seemed unresponsive to the touch.</p>
<p>“Stubborn thing,” he grunted, and a soft hum emanated next to him.</p>
<p>Esca froze, his hand still in his braccae.</p>
<p>“Your leg?” a voice mumbled, and Esca opened his eyes.</p>
<p>He was staring directly at himself – at Marcus.</p>
<p>“The ache often stays 'til morning,” Marcus opened his eyes and met Esca's gaze. “And that was a particularly bad night.”</p>
<p>Esca was wide-eyed, looking at Marcus in surprise. His hand was still in his braccae, and he wasn't sure he could remove it without catching Marcus's attention. Esca found himself caught in the haze between sleep and awake, and his tongue seemed unable to form an excuse.</p>
<p>So he spoke the truth instead.</p>
<p>“I've got my hand on your cock.”</p>
<p>Marcus's eyes grew wide, mirroring Esca's own expression, and his gaze faltered as if he couldn't bring himself to look at Esca's directly.</p>
<p>“And why is that?”</p>
<p>“It was stiff when I woke,” Esca explained, his hand still wrapped around Marcus's length. “I thought it was my own.”</p>
<p>Marcus laughed uneasily, and Esca watched as red crept up his shoulders, moving to colour his neck and cheeks. Esca knew the sight well, the mottled red on his skin a sure sign of embarrassment.</p>
<p>“I apologize. My cock often has a mind of its own.”</p>
<p>“Marcus,” Esca laughed, and he could feel himself softening, the uncomfortable conversation taking the edge off his arousal, “there's no need for apologies. I've got my hand on you also, so I'm as guilty as your cock, I suppose.”</p>
<p>Marcus laughed finally, a proper laugh, and his eyes met Esca's again. “I could leave you if you'd like.”</p>
<p>Esca grinned. “For what purpose?”</p>
<p>Marcus tilted his chin, signalling towards Ecsa's braccae and the hand which was still hidden inside.</p>
<p>“Nah,” Esca sighed, “It's your cock, and I'm not ashamed to tell you it doesn't like my touch.”</p>
<p>Marcus seemed to grow even redder, the colour travelling to his ears. “Esca--” he stuttered, “I wouldn't-- It would--” Marcus paused, shooting Esca a look of disbelief, his tongue seemingly unable to articulate his thoughts. “You've rendered me speechless.”</p>
<p>“I don't see why,” Esca teased, finally releasing his grip on Marcus's cock. It fell limp against his inner thigh, and Esca pulled his hand from his braccae. “You're the one with the difficult cock.”</p>
<p>Marcus turned onto his back as his laughter echoed through the room. “Difficult cock,” he muttered, averting his gaze as Esca retied the lacings on his braccae. “I'll make you a deal, my friend.”</p>
<p>“What sort of deal?”</p>
<p>“If you're trapped in my body much longer, I'll show you how to use it.”</p>
<p>It was Esca's turn to colour, red staining his cheeks as he considered Marcus's words. Marcus's pesky cock twitched, threatening to stiffen again, and Esca could only huff out a sharp-tongued reply. “Well, it is difficult. From pissing to coming, I fear I'd need lessons.”</p>
<p>Marcus laughed louder, taking advantage of being in Esca's smaller body by rolling on the bed beside him. “I'd teach you,” Marcus laughed, and Esca watched himself.</p>
<p>The spell hadn't been reversed, but he was glad to see Marcus smiling.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>